Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Single again, Linda Clayton is ready to let loose and have some fun. Jilted at a party, she met a younger man, Vaughn Reagan. He has an active imagination and allures her into his life by tempting her with seductive games.

Vaughn is thrilled to find a woman who doesn’t want children. He offers Linda a job so he can spend his days with her. Now, if he could only convince her to forget their age difference and enjoy the nights in his arms.

Excerpt:

“But did you meet anyone?” His father drilled the question at him like a staff sergeant. Ex-military, his voice struck the right chord to demand answers.

“Yes, but I’m . . .” he started, but his father interrupted.

“Then tell us all about her.”

“No.” Vaughn sprang from the couch and marched to the fireplace. Anger rumbled in his stomach, and a sour taste hit the back of his throat. He shoved his hands into his pockets and stared at the blue flame rising from the blackened wood.

Every time he met someone new, his father pushed and prodded until he wormed every detail about his relationship out into the open. To shake his dad off his back, he usually complied. But not this time. His attraction to Linda was special.

Why? The question raced through his head.

He shook his head and refused the temptation to use their encounter as a temporary diversion to soothe his father’s doubts about his sexuality.

“And why not? Is she married or something?” his dad inquired.

Vaughn clenched his hands into fists. His dad hated being in the dark about any subject related to his children.

“Wait, Big John, Vaughn will tell us when he’s ready.” His mother’s voice offered a token of peace in a discussion that could quickly erupt.

“Well, I’m ready now. So spill the beans, boy. I want to know who this girl is.”

Vaughn whipped around to glare at his father. The concern marking his father’s brow eased, and a grin spread across his face. A strong emotion punched Vaughn in the chest. His dad might be a pain in the ass, but he’d been there in every major event in Vaughn’s life. At the hospital, while he’d been fighting his bout with cancer, his dad pestered all the doctors with his demands for a cure. Now, the same determination called for Vaughn to find a wife and settle.

A prior conversation sparked in Vaughn’s memory. “Are you sure it’s a woman?”

“What?” his mom squealed.

His father shook his head. “Good try, but we’ve already had that talk.”

“When did you . . .” His mother stood and tugged her hand free of her husband’s. “I can’t believe you’d ask him such a thing.”

Vaughn recognized the trouble he’d laid at his father’s door. His mom could impale a man with her wrath. “It was a while ago, Mom.”

“And I had to ask.” His dad hammered a few more nails in his coffin.

“Why?” Her hands flew in the air and finally landed on her hips. The high-pitched tone of her voice echoed off the high ceiling. “I can’t believe you, Big John. The boy has a right to a private life. But no, you have to meddle where you don’t belong.”

“Come on, April. He might be a tough guy, but he’s also my son. I want to know what’s happening in his life.”

“No, you don’t. You’re trying to run his life.”

“But he should settle down and find a good woman like I have.” He leaned forward and grabbed his wife’s wrist. “It’ll give him a passion for living.”

“You don’t know that. Not everyone is guaranteed happiness simply because they’re married.” She tugged on her hand and took a few steps backwards.

His dad grinned, rose quickly, and caught her in a bear hug. “They would be if they married a woman as lovely as you.”

“John,” his mom yelped, her feet dangling in the air, before his dad dove for a kiss.

Vaughn laughed. His father could always soothe his mom’s ruffled feathers. He wondered if he’d ever find the special bond they shared with someone. A strand of auburn hair on his sleeve caught his attention, and a picture of Linda flashed through his head.

Could she be the one?

His father glanced at him and released his tight hold on his mom. “So, son, why don’t you tell your busybody mother about your new girlfriend?”

Youthful Temptations is about a couple finding love and overcoming stereotypes. We see that we all have baggage, it’s a part of us, and those that love us don’t mind the load we carry. Awesome story, I really enjoyed Youthful Temptations.